


The Evans Twins - First Year

by spiderdust



Series: The Evans Twins [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-16
Updated: 2020-09-30
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:42:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 15,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25317757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spiderdust/pseuds/spiderdust
Summary: Hermione Kate Evans.Twin sister to Lily Brooke Evans and younger sister to Petunia Dawn Evans.When Hermione and Lily receive their letters to Hogwarts, they are ecstatic. But what about Petunia and who's this Snape boy?
Relationships: Hermione Granger/James Potter
Series: The Evans Twins [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1907437
Comments: 63
Kudos: 153





	1. Cookies, Punches and Wishes

**Author's Note:**

> This first chapter is just little snippets of Hermione's childhood with her sisters and parents. Hope you enjoy! 
> 
> :)

***Monday, 18th July 1963 - 15:09***

"Hermione, no! Mummy said we aren't allowed anymore cookies - she said our teeth will rot"

This didn't deter the little girl that was currently trying to climb up the cupboard shelves, reaching for the cookie jar that sat on the top shelf. Hermione Evans was usually a very well-behaved, nice little girl but when it came to anything sweet, she turned into a craved monster. Her parents sometimes joked that she must have been starved of sugar filled things in a past life.

"Hermione, stop! I'll go get mum- Hermione!"

The 3 year old lost her grip as she had reached the top shelf and tumbled to the ground, landing on top of her twin sister - Lily Evans. Both of them immediately started crying, big fat tears rolling down their reddening cheeks as their sister panicked before running out of the kitchen to go and find their parents.

Both girls started crying harder when they saw their sister run out of the room, screaming for their Mummy and, in Hermione's case, cookies. Petunia then ran back in with both of their parents not far behind. Just as everyone ran into the room, the cookie jar floated down from the top shelve to the floor - just in front of the twins, who both stopped crying almost instantly, reaching for the jar. Their Father, Richard Evans, immediately snatched the jar back off the floor in a panic, looking at it in shock as Petunia started crying, eyeing the jar fearfully. The girls mother, Carol Evans, picked up both girls as they started crying again, her eyes meeting her Husband's, the fear in his eyes mirrored in her own.

* * *

***Friday, 31st January 1965 - 11:21***

The Twins were giggling as they held hands while running down to the park by their house, their sister running after them as their parents followed, smiles on their faces as they watched their children play around. They couldn't believe how big they had gotten in such a short amount of time - Hermione and Lily had both turned 5 yesterday and Petunia was turning 8 in just over a month.

Richard and Carol Evans knew their twin daughters were special. They had witnessed many incidents where something had floated down to them or appeared out of thin air. It had caused them a lot of sleepless nights and worried talks. But they were used to it now, barely even noticing it when something floated past them, it had happened so many times over the past 2 years. 

"Come on Tuney!"

"Yea, hurry up, Tuney! We have to get the swings before anyone else does!"

Hermione had always been a faster runner then her sisters, which is why Lily clung to her hand - so she didn't get left behind. Finally they slowed as the swings came into view, sighing when they saw Vernon Dursley and his little gang sitting on them. Lily stomped her foot and grumbled under her breath before turning around and dragging Hermione over to where the seesaw was. Petunia glared at the gang of boys before marching over to where her sisters were, rushing over when she saw them struggling to climb on.

"Be careful, Hermione! You'll hurt yourself!"

" _You'll hurt yourself, Hermione! Ooooh! Haha - what kind of a name is Hermione, anyway?_ "

Petunia's shoulders stiffened but she ignored the comment and the following laughter, carrying on walking towards her sisters. The boys shouted insults over to her as she carried on walking, laughing at her hair and dress. She ignored it all. Hermione didn't.

"Hey, you! Vernon Dursley-!"

"Hermione, no"

"Yes!"

Hermione was now marching towards the boys, who were watching her with amusement. Lily hesitated for a moment, looking over at Petunia. Her temper flared when she saw the hurt look on her sisters face and then she was quickly following her twin sister. Petunia panicked, as she often did with her younger sisters, and looked around for her parents but they were still down the street, chatting to Mr and Mrs Brown. Even if she ran, she wouldn't be able to make it to her parents before her sisters reached the gang of laughing boys. So, after a second of panicking and more panicking, she ran after her sisters.

"Look boys, it's the Evans. The bunch of freaks who live down the street"

All 3 girls felt their hearts drop. Could they know? How could they know? They were careful not to do any sort of 'magic' around anyone else. But their fears were put to rest when one of Vernon's sidekicks joined in.

"Yea. Who even reads, like, books anymore"

All the boys started laughing, pointed at the girls as they tried to shame them for reading books. Hermione smirked, a smirk that her sisters had taken to calling 'The Evil Smirk'.

"That explains a lot"

The laughter stopped, all the boys staring at the smirking girl with confused faces.

"Wot explains a lot- hey, that rhymed!"

The laughter started up again, all of the sidekicks high-fiving their leader who was smiling smugly. Hermione rolled her eyes, turning to look at her sisters who were just shaking their heads at the boys.

"The fact that you think reading books is old-fashioned explains a lot. For example... you're all idiots because you've probably not touched a book in your life"

Vernon paused, turning to look at Hermione who was standing with her hands on her hips, her sisters either side. He stood up off the swing, walking slowly past all of his mates until he stopped just in front of her.

"Wot.. did you just call me - little girl"

As he said 'little girl' he pulled on one of Hermione's pigtail, pulling out the red ribbon that her grandmother had given her before she died. He looked at it for a moment before throwing it down into the mud and stomping on it, squishing it down into the ground. He looked up from the, now brown, ribbon and smiled. 

Hermione punched him.

* * *

***Monday, 21st September 1967 - 17:53***

"Pass me the salt, Lily, please- no! don't float it. What have I told you? You and your sister need to learn to do everything like most people do it - we can't have people finding out. It doesn't matter that you're only 7, they'll take you away and experiment on you"

"Richard!"

Richard Evans looked at his wife for a moment before looking over at the frightened looks on his daughters faces. He sighed.

"I'm sorry for scaring you but it's true. You can't let anyone else see what you can do or what I say will happened. That means no more picking flowers and making them open and close or even floating books down from a high shelf. If you can't reach something then ask. You're going to have to learn to do everything the way everyone else does, ok?"

"Ok, Daddy"

"Yes, Daddy"

It was quiet for a moment before both girls excused themselves and ran off in the direction of their bedroom, the rest of their family watching on with sad looks on their faces.

Their mother put her head in her hands, sighing.

* * *

***Saturday, 30th January 1970 - 00:00***

"Happy Birthday, Lily"

"Happy Birthday, 'Mione"

Both girls were snuggled up in Hermione's bed. They did this every year, the night before their birthday, so they could be the first one to wish each other a Happy Birthday. It had started the year after their 4th birthday, when their whole family came in and shouted happy birthday. They had both been so upset they didn't even want to eat their birthday pancakes and Petunia ate them instead.

"Can you believe we're 10 years old? It feels like yesterday when you were climbing the shelves to get the cookies"

"That was yesterday, Lily"

Lily giggled.

"No, silly. When we were 3 - remember? You fell on me and then when Mum and Dad came into the room, the cookie jar floated down to us"

"Oh, yeah"

They both giggled, covering their mouths with their hands so their sister, Petunia didn't hear them in the next room. They weren't allowed to stay up this late but because Petunia was nearly 13, she got away with staying up later then them. She was probably playing on her Ping Pong game with her new 'Brown Box' that she had gotten for Christmas. The girls were desperate to play with it but she wouldn't let them because she was scared that their 'magic' would fry her game like it did the TV remote.

"'Mione?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you reckon there are other people like us- who can do magic?"

Hermione sighed, resting her cheek on her sisters shoulder, smiling when Lily's hair tickled her neck. Hermione was immensely jealous of Lily's and Petunia's hair. Lily had gotten their Father's dark ginger hair whereas Petunia and Hermione had gotten their Mothers brown hair. But while both Lily and Petunia had their Father straight and neat hair, Hermione had gotten their Mother's head of messy curls. It was the bane of her life and she had tried for years to persuade her Mother to buy a straightener but she had been rebuffed every time, being told to instead embrace her hair.

Lily loved Hermione's curls and often wished aloud to have them. Hermione always rolled her eyes whenever she heard Lily say that. She wouldn't want the curls if she had to spend nearly 45 minutes every morning and night brushing it and having her neck ache when her hair was wet because there was _so much of it_! And blow drying it? Not even a possibility.

"I don't know. I hope so. I hope there's a whole community just waiting to embrace us without even a thought. That would be nice."

"Yea. It would be, wouldn't it?"

Both girls drifted off to sleep, their dreams filled with people just like them. People who would welcome them without a thought towards their background or what they looked like. People who would accept them.


	2. Letters, McGonagall and A New Friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Thank you for all the love on the first chapter - i didn't expect so many people to discover this story till a few more chapters had been posted.  
> Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter!

***Sunday 30th January 1971 - 8:05am***

"I can't believe my girls are 11 already! It doesn't seem that long ago that I had to pull our Hermione off of that boy - Vernon, was it? "

Lily let out a laugh, nodding, looking at her twin with sly eyes. Hermione face had gone red but she was smiling with the rest of her family, laughing at the memory.

"Yeah, well, he deserved it. Not only was he taunting Petunia, he also stomped Grammy's ribbon into the ground. Thank goodness you managed to wash it off without a problem, Mum"

Mrs Evans smiled at her daughter. It turned into a grimace at the thought of Vernon, the boy who had bullied her oldest daughter for years and then turned onto her youngest daughters. She had almost been too happy to deliver the unconscious boy to his parents. Almost. Petunia laughed at the face her mother pulled, joining in on the conversation.

"I feel sorry for his mother - hell, I feel sorry for whoever has to marry that sod and carry his children"

Everyone laughed, their parents forgetting to reprimand Petunia's choice of language as they tried to catch their breath back. Hermione had just pulled another 3 pancakes onto her plate, looking out of the window for a mere second before looking back to her food and doing a double take.

"Daddy? Why are there owls flying towards our house?"

Everyone looked up at the open window just as two owls flew through and into their dining room. Petunia screeched as the owls landed into front of her two younger sisters, waving her hands and trying to shoo them away. Hermione grabbed her hands, stilling them, her eyes locked to the letter that was tried to the owls foot.

"Petunia, stop. That letter - it has my name on it."

"This one has mine on it too"

The two girls were reaching for their letters when a knock at the door made everyone jumped. Hermione and Lily both leapt out of their chair, shouting in synchronization.

" _I'll get it_!" 

They both ran to the door, Hermione pulling open the chain lock as Lily turned the handle, opening the door. A woman, looking to be in her mid 30s, dressed in a emerald green cloak and matching pointy hat greeted them at the door. Her black hair, lined with a few grey hairs here and there, was pulled back into a tight bun, making her face look severe. The girls started for a moment, unsure of what to say, when the woman smiled, breaking the almost angry look on her face and giving her a more friendly look.

"Hello, you must be Lily and Hermione Evans? My name is Professor McGonagall. Are you parents home?"

Both girls nodded, stepping aside to let her in. The woman smile at them as she walked past them and into the hall. Hermione and Lily looked at each other for a second before slamming the door shut and running after Professor McGonagall. She had figured out where their parents were from the whispers that were coming from the dining room. Their parents must have heard footsteps as they walked towards the room because her father called out to them.

"Hermione? Lily? Who was it- have they gone?"

"I'm afraid not, Mr Evans. Ah - I see you have received your letters. I had hoped that I would arrive before them but I'm a little behind schedule. The last family had a bit of a fainting session "

Petunia's mouth fell open as Professor McGonagall walked in, followed by Hermione and Lily - both of them looking a little sheepish as their father stood up, his face angry.

"Girls -what were you thinking?! Inviting a stranger into our house! This woman could be a thief- a murderer!"

Professor McGonagall pursed her lips, her eyes narrowing as she looked at the man in front of her.

"Luckily for you, Mr Evans, I am neither of those. Now if we could all sit down and talk like civilized people"

She placed herself down in the spare chair, gesturing for the girls and their father to do the same. Everyone sat down, looking at the strange woman nervously as she untied the letters from each of the owls, handing them to their respective owners. The twins took them, their hands shaking only a little bit.

"Open them. I'm happy to answer any questions once you have finished reading them"

Both girls turned their letters over, staring at the wax seal for a moment before gently teasing it off the paper, opening the envelope successfully - no rips. Professor McGonagall smiled at that. She loved neat children. They both pulled out two pieces of parchment, opening up the 1st one simultaneously. They read silently, their faces giving away no emotion as they read, although they cast little glances at each other every so often. Eventually they looked up, big smiles on their faces.

"Is it true? Are we really...?"

Professor McGonagall smiled and nodded.

"Every word of it"

"Is what true? Hermione, Lily. Explain what's going on. Right now"

Both girls looked to their Father, massive smiles stretching across their faces as they clutched each other hands under the table. Hermione spoke first.

"You know all those things we can do? Floating things and everything else"

Their father looked over at the woman sitting across from him, taking in her shocked face, before opening his mouth to speak. Lily cut him off.

"Well. It's because we're witches. And there are others out their. People like us!"

Richard Evans raised an eyebrow, shaking his head as he turned to look at the strange woman in front of him.

"I don't know what you're playing at but your look of shock when my daughters spoke about their... 'magic', shows that you don't know anything about my daughters. So who are you and why are you here. I will not allow my daughters to be taken away for experiments"

Professor McGonagall didn't look perturbed, simply crossing her legs and turning her full attention to the angry man in front of her.

"I assure you - I am not here to hurt your daughters. I was simply surprised because I have never heard of children floating anything without a wand or a spell. Accidental magic usually consists of windows smashing during a tantrum or something along those lines. Have control over their magic without having ever been properly trained shows great power."

"Wands. Spells. Magic. You say all of this and yet I have seen no proof from you-"

He was cut off by the Professor standing up and transforming into a tabby cat. She leaped onto the table, daintily walking past all the food before jumping back down on the other side, next to the shocked looking man. Transforming back, she smiled at him.

"Is that proof enough for you?"

* * *

***Wednesday 19th February 1971 - 11:39am***

Hermione and Lily were at the park again. Petunia, having just turned 14, had ditched them to hang out with the girls her own age. Lily had been upset by this but Hermione had just shrugged it off.

"She still loves us, Lil. She just doesn't want to hang out with 11 year old's anymore. Apparently it's uncool or something. We'll see her at home later"

"I know. It just feels like-"

Hermione shushed her, her eyes flickering over to the hollow tree that lay just a few meters ahead of them. She pointed at it, mouthing at Lily.

" _Someone's there_ "

Lily froze, looking at the tree suspiciously as Hermione bent down, picking up a small pebble that lay just by her feet. She looked at it for a moment before looking at Lily, who nodded, and throwing it at the tree. They heard a small thunk before-

"Ow!"

Hermione smiled triumphantly, squeezing Lily's hand in victory.

"Stop eavesdropping and come out!"

They waited in patent silence, eyes locked on the tree. about 15 seconds passed before a boys head appeared, his eyes wide. The girls eyes flickered over his baggy clothes as he slowly stepped out of the hollow in the tree, hands up in surrender. He started walking towards them, stopping when Hermione threw a hand up.

"Why were you eavesdropping on our conversation? It's rude you know"

"I- I'm sorry. I didn't know what else to do. I needed- I need to tell you two something. Something important"

Hermione and Lily looked at each other in confusion before looking back at the boy. They nodded.

"You're both - and don't run away until I explain everything. You're both witches"

The Twins immediately burst into laughter, clutching onto each other's shoulders as they crouched slightly, holding their stomachs. The boy looked offended. He stepped forward slightly, causing Hermione to look up.

"It's true. I promise it's true-"

Hermione held out her hand again, standing up properly as she wiped away the tears of mirth from her eyes. She looked at the boy in amusement. Lily did the same, speaking as she gripped onto Hermione's elbow.

"We already know. It was our 11th birthday at the end of January. Professor McGonagall told us everything. You're a bit late"

The boys face fell at those words. He had so hoped to be the one to tell them, to see the look of wonder on their faces - especially Lily's - as he explained about Hogwarts and wands and spells. He must have misjudged their birthday. He thought they were born around March time. 

"What's your name?"

"Severus Snape"

"And.. you're a Wizard?"

Severus nodded, a smile working it's way onto his face. He tried walking forward again, his smile growing when Hermione didn't stop him. 

"Yeah. I'm a wizard. My Mum's a witch but my dad's a muggle"

Hermione nodded. Professor McGonagall had explained about muggles. She looked at Lily for a second, communicating without words as Severus looked on in confusion. Eventually, Lily nodded.

"Would you like to go on swings with us, Severus?"

* * *


	3. Diagon Alley, The Potters and Familiars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hermione, Lily, Petunia and their parents go to Diagon Alley with Professor McGonagall and meet some interesting people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoy x

***Saturday 13th April 1971 - 12:00***

"Can I get a cat, Daddy?"

"Oooh, yes! Can I get an owl?"

Richard Evans chuckled, smile at his two daughters enthusiasm. His oldest daughter Petunia, was also laughing at her sisters excitement. Her parents had been worried that Petunia might lash out at the girls or be jealous of their magic but they needn't have worried - Petunia was still the kind, loving older sister that she had always been. Hermione and Lily's new teacher, Professor McGonagall, was walking ahead of them. She was taking them to a place called Diagon Alley but then she was going to have to leave. Luckily she had owled another Wizarding family who would be taking them to all the different shops needed to buy the twin's school supplies.

"We'll see, girls"

Both of the girls squealed happily, turning to speak to Petunia but pausing when they saw her downcast face. They both turned back to their father.

"Can Petunia get a pet, Dad? It can keep her company while we're gone"

"I don't see why not"

Petunia looked up, her eyes shining. She smiled at her sisters, her face looking much happier. Hermione would hate to be the only daughter who didn't have magic so she always made sure to include her oldest sister in everything she did.

That was another thing Hermione hated. Being the youngest. She was 3 and a half years younger than Petunia and 2 hours younger than her twin- 2 hours that Lily never let her forget. Being the youngest had it's ups and downs, the biggest 'down' being the fact that everyone was so protective of her - even though she had been the one to knock out a boy 5 years older then her and 10 times her weight when she was only 5.

"We're here. Now, Mr and Mrs Evans, the wizarding family I told you about will be inside this pub. Just look for an older looking couple with a young boy around the same age as your girls. I'm afraid I have to leave you here, I hope you all have a great time."

She opened a door that the family hadn't seen before on their many trips to London and ushered them in, waving goodbye before closing the door. The Evans family was greeted by the smell of cooking food, the sound of clinking glasses and the noise of people coming and going. They stood there, lost, for a moment before a woman walked up to them, a large smile on her face.

"Hello! You must be the Evans family, correct?"

Mrs Evans nodded and shook the offered hand of the woman in front of her, Mr Evans doing the same. The lady smiled at the girls before introducing herself.

"My names Euphema Potter. My husband Fleamont and my son James have just popped to the W.C.. They'll be back in a second. So, are you girls excited?"

Hermione and Lily nodded, smiles on their faces as they shook the Mrs Potter's hand in turn.

"Ah, here they are. Decided to join us at last?"

Mr Potter laughed, clapping the boy, who Hermione assumed was James, on the shoulder.

"James here splashed water all over himself when he was washing his hands"

James grimaced, his eyes locked on Hermione as his cheeks flushed red.

"Dad!"

Hermione giggled at the embarrassed look on James's face, causing his cheeks to blush even more as he stared at her in what looked like awe. Both sets of parents noticed this and smiled at each other, watching the exchange between their children. James stuck his hand out to Hermione

"Hi, I'm James"

Hermione smiled, shaking his hand. She was about to pull her hand away when James grabbed it again and bowed down, pressing his lips to the back of her hand. Hermione gaped, her eyes wide in shock. Petunia giggled, her eyes bright and Lily just stared, her face a mask of confusion. Hermione slowly pulled her hand out of James's grip, shoving it into her pocket as she stared at him almost fearfully.

"Ummm. I'm Hermione, this is my twin sister Lily and my older sister Petunia. It's, ah, nice to meet you?"

"The pleasure is all mine"

He winked at her, he teeth gleaming at her when he smiled. Hermione looked up at smiling mother, lost. James rubbed the back of his neck as he stared at her, his eyes not leaving her face. Mr Evans cleared his throat, placing his hands on Hermione's shoulders.

"Alrighty then. We were told you would show us around?"

Fleamont nodded and started leading them through the maze of tables, his arm linked with his wife's. Mr and Mrs Evans followed, the children taking up the rear. Lily watched with a small smirk as James followed Hermione like a lost puppy, his eyes wide. Hermione had never been so uncomfortable in her life, nervously looking over her shoulder every so often and coming face to face with a grinning boy. She couldn't get away from him. She walked fast, he walked fast. Hermione was quickly becoming annoyed, her cheeks flushing as her anger started to grow.

Eventually, they came to a small alleyway behind the pub. Hermione looked around, confused, her anger momentarily forgotten. She and her family watched as Euphema faced the wall in front of them and tapped her wand three times on certain bricks. They looked on in awe as the bricks started moving themselves until an arch formed and they were faced with crowds of witches and wizards, all going about their shopping.

"Oh, wow!"

"Hermione- look at the owls! Oh and those sweets. Oh, I could just stay here forever!"

Hermione nodded in agreement, her fingers locked around her sister's as they waked through the archway, senses overwhelmed. She didn't know where to look, her eyes were flickering everywhere. She noticed that a lot of people noticed the Potter couple as they walked past, waving and smiling happily. But she also noticed several others glaring at the family, muttering under their breath. Hermione was quite certain that she heard the word 'Blood-traitor'. What on earth was a 'Blood-traitor'? She turned round to ask James, rolling her eyes when he blushed and looked away, having been caught staring at the back of her head.

"James. What's a blood traitor? I heard that black haired woman mutter it back there"

James's momentary excitement dimmed when she asked that, turning around to look at the woman in question, who was still glaring at them, her hands resting on the shoulders of two boys who were facing the other direction. He grimaced, turning back to look at Hermione and Lily. Petunia had ran ahead to marvel at the sights with her parents.

"That's Walburga Black. She's my Grandmothers niece and a massive Pureblood supremist. She doesn't like muggles or muggleborns. She doesn't even like half-bloods and most Pureblood families tolerate them. And because we associate - or sympathize, however you want to see it - with muggles and muggleborns alike, the Potter family have been labelled as Blood-traitors for 'betraying our Pureblood blood'. I never really understood it"

Hermione was silent for a moment, as was Lily. They both seemed to come to the same conclusion at the same time because their faces darkened slightly. Hermione didn't voice her thought, anger slowly brewing inside her. Lily spoke up instead.

"So, people like us - who are born to non-magical parents - are looked down upon in Wizarding society. Great. Just fantastic"

James cringed at the sarcasm that barely concealed the bubbling anger in Lily's voice. He shook his head adamantly, speaking before the girls could get any angrier.

"Most Wizards are perfectly fine with Muggleborns. It's just the small percent, people like the Malfoy or Black families, that don't like you. But they don't matter"

Hermione smiled slightly before noticing that their parents were quite away ahead of them. Quickly mentioning it to the other two, they all started quickly make their way through the throngs of people, taking on a slight run to catch up with the others.

"Oof!"

Hermione stopped her almost run and turned around to see Lily on the floor, a chubby boy around their age standing above her. She frowned when she saw the slight scrape marks on her sisters palms. She quickly walked up behind the boy, grabbing his shoulder and forcing him round to face her.

"Hey, what the hell do you think you're doing?"

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!"

The boy looked scared, his hands shaking slightly as he looked at her frowning face. His shaking seemed to worsen when James came to stand behind her as well, frowning at him before going to help Lily to her feet. 

"Hermione, it's fine. He didn't push me- I ran into him. No need to scare the poor boy"

Lily laughed, looking at her stinging palms for a second before brushing them off on her jeans. She ignored the sting of pain, having scraped her palms hundreds of times while growing up. At Lily's words, Hermione relaxed, taking her hand off of the boys shoulder. She mimicked her sister's movement, wiping her hand on her jeans, feeling like she had touched something slimey. She didn't like this boy, he made her feel icky - like there was something untrustworthy about him.

"Right. Ok. Sorry. Come on guys, our parents are calling us over"

And they were. They had noticed their children lagging behind and were now calling out to them, waving at them to hurry up. Shrugging at the boy, Hermione gently wrapped her fingers around Lily's elbow - not able to hold her hand - and they both started walking towards their family. James stayed for a second, frowning at the boy who had made his Hermione angry. He didn't like him.

Soon enough, the three children had rejoined the group and were now off towards Gringotts, something that fascinated The Twins, both of them immediately hounding the eldest Potters with questions while James looked on, trying to get Hermione's attention unsuccessfully.

* * *

***Saturday 13th April 1971 - 15:47***

Both Lily and Hermione had gotten everything they needed without anymore incidents. Lily was now the proud owner of a willow wand, ten a quarter inches long with a unicorn hair core and Hermione now owned a vine wood wand, ten and three quarter inches with a dragon heartstring core. They both adored their new wands but they were soon forgotten when their father announced that he would buy them all one pet of their choice as a late birthday present.

All three of the Evans girls were nearly jumping up and down in excitement as the Potters led them to a shop called the Magical Menagerie where they could hear a number of animal noises. Lily rushed ahead and straight into the shop when she heard the owl noises, dragging Hermione along behind her. Lily was a lot stronger then she seemed to be. 

"Oh, Hermione! Look at that gorgeous Barn Owl! He's the prettiest owl I've every seen"

"How do you know it's boy?"

"Because it says so on the sign"

Hermione sniggered, leaving Lily behind to gaze in awe at the owl. She made her way over to the cat section, smiling at the worker behind the counter as she walked past. Cats were everywhere, kittens, tomcats, everything. Hermione was in cat heaven as she carefully looked at each cat, wanting to be sure to get the right one. So far, however, none of the cats were calling to her. She had read in a book, while they were browsing in Florish and Blotts, that had told her about familiars - which were totally different to normal pets. You tell if an animal was your familiar because you felt drawn to them - and them to you. The theory had already been confirmed for her when Lily walked straight to that barn owl, not even looking at the other owls.

Hermione had now walked past all of the cats and none of them had called out to her. Some of them had looked at her curiously, meowing but that was the extent of it. She stood there, feeling a bit downcast, when she felt a slight sensation in her stomach - almost like a hook was pulling at it. It seemed to be coming from behind her so she turned around to see a gorgeous Tortoiseshell kitten sauntering towards her, it's green eyes staring up at her curiously. It's tail was up in the air, waving almost sassily, and Hermione immediately knew that this was the cat for her. 

She walked over to it, crouching down. Holding her hand out, she smiled as the kitten rubbed it's head against her palm, purring. Hermione scooped it up into her arms just as the rest of her group found her, Lily holding the cage with her barn owl in it and Petunia holding a medium sized glass tank with a corn snake in it. Hermione looked at the snake weirdly for a second before flicking her eyes up to her sisters. Petunia shrugged.

"I don't know what happened. I was looking at the owls with Lily but I found myself walking into the snake section and towards this handsome boy. It felt like he chose me rather than the other way around but I'm happy with it"

Hermione smiled at that, running her finger along the kittens head as she walked towards her family. Everyone cooed over her kitten, petting it gently as it purred delightfully. She had decided to call her Bean - the name had just jumped to the front of her mind.

"Her name is Bean"

"My owl's name is Tyto - what about your snake, Petunia? What's his name?"

Petunia looked down at her snake, pondering, before a grin appeared on her face.

"Cornelius"

Everyone laughed, liking the name. They all made their way to the counter and their father paid, Fleamont helping him count out the right amount. James had, again, sidled up beside her, leaning against her arm. Making sure that none of the adults were paying attention, she elbowed him straight in the ribs.

"Oof! _What was that for_?"

"Stop leaning on me and it won't happen again!"

James pouted, crossing his arms and stepping away from her. Lily smirked at her sister, her eyes laughing. Finally, their new pets had been paid for and returned to their owners arms as they walked out of the shop. The Potters led them back to the Leaky Cauldron.

"Right, I think it's time for us to go home then. Thank you for helping us find what our girls needed - hopefully we can stay in touch, have you got a telephone?"

"No, we don't have...one of those, but Lily's new owl, Cornelius, should be happy enough to send letters back and forth"

Everyone nodded, shaking hands and hugging as they said goodbye. James looked very upset as Hermione shook his hand but he cheered up as his mother mentioned sending letters, his mouth grinning. Hermione grimaced, already annoyed as James started bouncing up and down around her. Her parents laughed at her face before leading their daughters out of the pub, waving to the Potters as the door closed.

"Let's go home then"

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No, the cat is not Crookshanks but it is a sassy cat :)
> 
> I've been thinking - who should be best friends in this whole group of friends. Obviously, Lily and Hermione are best friends and it will be staying that way throughout the whole story. James and Sirius (obvs) - but i was thinking, should Sirius and Hermione also be best friends as they're both sassy, sarcastic and stand up for themselves etc. 
> 
> What do you think? Please put your thoughts in the comments x


	4. Fights, Velevistion and Secret Spots

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Little snippets of Hermione and Lily's school and home life until they leave for Hogwarts in September.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The fight at the start is for you, Genevieve, as you commented on the last chapter wishing that Hermione had punched that boy x :)

***Wednesday 21st May 1971 - 12:18am***

Hermione had been peacefully reading a book on a bench in the school playground with Lily by her side, reading over shoulder, when the book was roughly snatched out of her hand. Looking up, they saw Jessica and her little friends, sniggering behind their hands. Hermione held her hand out.

"Give it back, Jessica"

"Why don't you take it from me, freak!"

Hermione nodded, slipping off of the bench. Ignoring Lily's whispered warning, she walked up to the sniggering girls, going straight for their leader. 

"I'll you one more chance, Jessica. Give. It. Back. _Now_."

"Make me"

Hermione launched herself at the unsuspecting girl, her fists going straight for the face. Jessica screamed as they fell to the ground, her hands going to Hermione's hair, yanking at it. Hermione was unperturbed, her punches getting harder as they rolled around on the ground, Jessica scratching at her face, drawing blood. Lily was screaming at them to stop and Jessica's friends had ran off to find a teacher. The other students, hearing the screams and shouts of the two girls, had ran over, surrounding the two girls in a large circle, cheering them on.

"Go on, Hermione! Show Jessica what's what!"

"Get that freak, Jess! Punch her!"

"Fight, fight, fight, fight, fight!"

Lily was crying now, having spotted the blood running down Hermione's face. Several teachers were now running over from different directions, all of them shouting for the crowd to clear. The students listened, the cheering coming to a stop as they parted to let in the teachers. Hermione, who was currently on top of Jessica, was pulled off by Mr Macintosh, Year 6 teacher, and Jessica was pulled off the ground by Mrs Smith, a Year 5 teacher. Lily's sobs worsened when she saw the state of Hermione's face. 

There were large scratches covering her cheeks as well as a black eye, a bleeding nose and a cut splitting her eyebrow. Jessica wasn't better off, her nose also bleeding as well as sporting two black eyes, bruises all over her face and a large cut splitting her lip. Both girls were breathing heavily, glaring at each other as they struggled in the teachers grip, trying to get back at each other. Lily was taken inside by another teacher to calm down, wiping her tears with a tissue.

"GO BACK TO YOUR CLASSROOMS! NOTHING TO SEE HERE - GIRLS COME WITH ME!"

It was the Headmaster, Mr Wilson, one of the scariest teachers in the school. The rest of the students scarpered, casting sympathetic glances over at the girls. He led the two girls to the Nurse's office, standing between them to prevent another fight. When they got to the Nurse, he let Jessica go in first as she was worse off and gave Hermione a tissue for her nose. Sitting down with Hermione on the chairs outside of the office, he looked at her bleeding face for a second before sighing.

"I might expect Jessica to get in a fight but you, Hermione? That I would never have expected. I assume Jessica started it?"

"No sir, I did. She took my book and wouldn't give it back so I punched her. I'm not going to say sorry either"

The Headmaster looked shocked but Hermione ignored it, staring ahead while kicking her feet up and down. Seeing that her tissue was more red than white, he grabbed her another one, chucking the bloody one in the bin. He didn't know what to say, Hermione was one of his best students - alongside her sister, they were top of the school. It was their last year at Primary and neither one of them had gotten into the slightest bit of trouble until now. Sure, he'd always known she was a strong willed child who wasn't afraid to stand up for herself and other people but he never put her down as a fighter.

"Right. I'll be calling in your parents and you'll have a weeks detention for starting a fight but I won't cane you as I think you've gotten enough punishment in that department. Looks like the Nurse is ready for you. I'll see you in my Office when your parents arrive - and don't worry, Jessica will be getting the same punishments for Bullying"

Hermione nodded, standing up from her chair. She turned to the door, glaring evilly at Jessica as the girl walked out before being led into the room by the astounded Nurse.

* * *

***Friday 30th May 1971 - 10:00am***

Hermione smiled as the doorbell rang, skipping over to the door. The Potter's were visiting today, so it was most likely them. They had visited the Potter's home at the start of May and Hermione had been discouraged to find out that James was just as obsessed as ever, shouting her name and wrapping his arms around her - much to the amusement of her sisters, who knew how much she hated his attention.

Opening the door, her smile widened when she saw the Potter's standing patiently. James leaped forward, hugging her. Hermione stiffened for a moment before relaxing slightly. She had learned last time, the faster you accepted the hug, the faster he let go. She accepted her hug from Fleamont and then a hug from Euphema. The Potter matriarch gasped when she saw the state of Hermione's face, her hand lifting her chin to inspect her injuries. It had only been just over a week since her fight so her face was still very much healing. 

The scratches were now long lines of angry red scabs, her black eye was very faint but still visible and the cut through her eyebrow had 4 stitches through it. The Nurse had told her that it would most likely scar and that the hair wouldn't grow back but Hermione didn't care. It was worth it.

"Hermione, sweetheart! What happened to your face?"

Hermione's father had now joined them at the door, smiling at his guests.

"She got into a fight with a girl at school for stealing her book. Lily was traumatized for days after but Hermione wasn't bothered. She's a nut, this one"

Euphema tutted, Fleamont chuckled as he shook hands with Hermione's father and James stared at Hermione in complete adoration as if her getting into a fight made him fall even more in love with her. Stepping aside to let their guests inside, Hermione and her father led them into the Living Room where the rest of the family was watching the T.V. James gasped and ran up to it. He turned to Hermione.

"Is this the .. Velevistion you were talking about?!"

Hermione laughed, sitting next to Lily on their extra big armchair as the Potters greeted her mother and sisters.

"Yes but it's called a _Television_ not a Velevistion"

"Oh... it's really cool. Who's that?"

James pointed at the man who was speaking to large crowd outside of 10 Downing Street.

"That's Edward Heath, the Prime Minister"

"Is he like our Minister for Magic, Eugenia Jenkins?"

Hermione nodded, they were basically the same thing. She smiled as her mother came around with the biscuit tin, picking out a Custard Cream.

"After you kids have finished your biscuits, you can go to the park - if that's ok with you, Euphema?"

"Oh, yes. That's perfectly fine by me"

All three children grinned, quickly wolfing down their biscuits, wiping the crumbs off of their laps. Petunia had already retreated to her bedroom, playing with the make up she had gotten as a birthday present. Waving a quick goodbye to their parents, Hermione, Lily and James made their out of the house.

"It's a shame I didn't think to bring the brooms. We could've played Quidditch again"

Hermione and Lily smiled. They had played a half game of quidditch when they went to James's house. Hermione had been petrified at first but once she was up in the air, she had gotten used to it and was flying circles around her sister in no time. 

"I think that might have been against the law, James"

James grinned at Lily's words, his eyes taking in the scenery. He had never walked through a muggle neighborhood before but he was immensely interested in the different, non moving plants that were in each of the front gardens. He started swinging his arms, his hand getting closer and closer to Hermione's with each swing. Hermione frowned when she felt his hand brush hers, slapping it away. James immediately pulled puppy dogs eyes.

"Oh, Hermione - why must you reject my advances! The sooner you accept me, the sooner we can be married!"

Hermione's eyes bugged as Lily burst into laughter.

"What!"

James was just about to reply when he saw a group of boys, around the age of 15/16, walking to the other side of the road, casting frightened looks over at Hermione. His confusion grew when he saw Hermione smile and wiggle her fingers at them, making them walk away faster.

"Umm, Mione? Who are those boys and why do they looked so scared of you?"

Hermione giggled and James felt his heart melt. Could she get any more adorable?

"That's Vernon and his gang. They're frightened of me because I punched him when I was 5 - he was bullying Petunia and I"

James stared at the girl beside him, his eyes wide. Merlin, he was falling in love with this girl. He knew she was the girl for him. He was sure of it.

* * *

***Thursday 29th August 1971 - 14:12***

Months had passed and the girls were getting more and more excited, jumping up and down around the house. They had just over 2 days until they were off to Hogwarts. They were currently in their secret hiding spot, waiting for Severus. It was a small area behind the park, by a small lake and hidden by a gathering of trees as well a large willow tree. No one else knew it was here so it became their spot. They had seen the Potter family at least 4 more times since they came to their house back in April and both families were quickly becoming fast friends. They had taken James to the park every time he had visited but they had never taken him here. This was strictly for the three of them.

Hermione and Lily were sunbathing, dressed in matching lacy summer dresses and brown gladiator sandals, eyes closed. Suddenly, hands grabbed both of them, making them sit up, screaming. Hermione turned and punched, thankfully missing, before she realised it was Severus. 

"Severus! I'm sorry for trying to punch you but don't do that!"

Their friend laughed, both girls trying to keep an angry face before failing and joining in on his laughter. They lay back down, Severus now laying next to Lily. They were all silent for a while, soaking in the sun as they thought of what was to come when they went to Hogwarts.

"So, what house do you think we'll be in?"

"I'm going into Slytherin. No doubt there - my whole families been in Slytherin"

"Really? I was thinking more along the lines of Ravenclaw or Gryffindor. I'm too violent to be a Hufflepuff"

"Same here, although my violent tendencies don't come out as often as yours, Mione. I don't think I'd like being in Slytherin. It's under the lake for goodness sake. Too murky for me"

Severus frowned, looking over at his two best friends. He didn't want to be separated from them.

"I don't like the idea of being in separate houses"

"Don't worry Sev, we'll still be friends. No matter what"

"Promise?"

Both Hermione and Lily spoke at the same time, their voices blending with each other in a way that Severus had never heard. Lily's voice was beautiful but it sounded better when melding together with Hermione's.

"Promise."

Little did they know that in the years to come, their friendship would be little more than memories. Echoing voices and forgotten laughter. Dust.

* * *

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://ae01.alicdn.com/kf/HTB1aWGOJVXXXXaBXXXXq6xXFXXXr/Summer-Dresses-For-Girls-Cotton-Children-Clothing-Denim-Baby-Clothes-Floral-Short-Sleeve-Kids-Clothes-For.jpg
> 
> ^ Hermione and Lily's summer dress - Hermione wearing the one with the white skirt and Lily with the blue skirt. x
> 
> http://images.esellerpro.com/2308/I/767/05/60121050_z1.jpg
> 
> ^ Their shoes
> 
> ***
> 
> I've been thinking. I've seen a lot of writers take prompts/story ideas from their readers and create short fanfics or oneshots and I was wondering if you guys would like that as well? So if you have a story idea and, for whatever reason, you can't/don't want to write it but would like to see it written, then that would be great.
> 
> If you have any ideas/prompts right now then you can give them to me on my tumblr (which i have just created for this very purpose)
> 
> My Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/septemberwails


	5. The Hogwarts Express and Sirius Black

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I'm so sorry that this has taken so freaking long!  
> I got major writers block and then i went on holiday to the Isle of Wight (it was so hot and i've got major sunburn) and there was no wifi so - fun! I don't currently have a phone so i couldn't continue writing with mobile data, just my laptop...
> 
> I'm also sorry that it's so short but I'm trying to sort out this writer's block. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy the chapter and that you don't think it's that shitty ;()
> 
> Love you all x

***Saturday 1st September 1971 - 8:45***

The Evans house was abuzz as people rushed back and forth through the house, making sure that they had everything they needed before setting off to Kings Cross Station. The Potters had promised to meet them at the station, inbetween Platforms 9 and 10, and Richard and Carol Evans couldn't be more relived. No matter how many times their daughters told them that they would 'simply' just have to run through a wall, they still couldn't wrap their heads around it

"Ready, girls! We'll have to go in the next couple of minutes if we want to make it in time!"

"Coming, Mum!"

Hermione bounded down the stairs, holding a disgruntled kitten in her arms. Bean had grown quite a bit in the months since they had bought and would soon be more cat then kitten. She followed Hermione everywhere, even lying on the floor beside her when she took a bath. Hermione's suitcase banged down the stairs behind her. Ignoring her mother's wince, the ran past, her suitcase almost flipping over in her hast to get to the car. 

Lily wasn't far behind, walking down only slightly slower than her sister - if only not to completely annoy Tyto, her barn owl. She was soon following her sister through the door, apologizing when she tripped, knocking Tyto is his cage. Petunia walked down the stairs, smiling with her mother at her sisters excitement. Making sure that nothing had been left behind, they both joined their family in the car and then they were off!

* * *

***Saturday 1st September 1971 - 10:50***

The station was bustling when they arrived, all of them getting weird looks as they loaded their luggage onto two trolleys. Hermione took the lead, having been here once before on a school trip. Lily had been ill that day and unable to go so Hermione was the only one in the family who vaguely knew their way around. They quickly found the Potter family, between the Platforms 9 and 10, as promised. James lit up when he saw Hermione, opening his arms wide for a hug, only to pause when he saw that her arms were holding Bean and unable to hug him back. 

Hermione shrugged at him, her eyebrows raising as if to say 'What can I do?'. James seemed to agree with her as he went off to instead greet Richard and Carol. Hermione grinned down at Bean, silently thanking the cat. It's not that she didn't like James. It's just that he was... well...James. Lily slunk up next to her, a sly grin on her face. Hermione looked at her in confusion for a moment before unsuccessfully trying to hide an amused smile with a frown.

"Oh, shut up"

Lily laughed, gently stroking Bean on the head as she did. Everyone else was slowly making their way over, chatting as they did.

"Ready girls, first time through the wall!"

Hermione and Lily were smiling as they looked up at the happy Euphema. They joined the group as they slowly walked closer to the wall, everyone pushed the girls to go first. Hermione gestured to Lily, allowing her to run through first before running through seconds after her sister disappeared.

Hermione held her breathe as she ran through the wall, releasing a big puff of air as she came out the other side. Lily was the first thing she saw, stepping closer to her side as they watched James run through and then all 4 adults. The train let out a whistle, indicating the 5 minute mark before it left. Allowing a worker to take their luggage, still keeping a hold on their pets and carry on bags, all three children turned to say goodbye to their families. 

"I'll be expecting you to write to me every week girls- no excuses"

The girls laughed, nodding as they both hugged their parents. Petunia was staring into the distance, arms crossed. Hermione and Lily could see the glassy sheen in her eyes but they didn't mention it, simply wrapping their sister into a group hug. Petunia let a small sob but again, they didn't mention it - they were trying to hold back tears of their own. It was difficult trying to imagine their lives without Petunia in it. Sure, they'd see her on the holidays but they were used to seeing her everyday. Even as she got older and spent a little bit more time in her own room, she still made sure to spend at least a couple of hours with her sister. 

"Don't forget about me when you're hanging out with your fancy new wizard friends"

"As if!"

The girls spoke in sync - something that had been happening more and more in recent months. They'd always been able to do it, they just preferred not to as they liked being seen as separate human beings instead of just 'The Twins'. The girls were pulled out their hug when their mother reminded them that the train was going to leave very soon. The sisters gave each other one last squeeze, waving goodbye to the Potters and their parents before making their way over to the train with James at Hermione's side, trying to wrap his arm around her.

Both sets of parents chuckled when they saw Hermione push him off, giving him a harsh glare. Fleamont sidled over to Richard, leaning over to whisper so their wives wouldn't hear them.

"10 galleons that they get together before 5th year" He said, watching Hermione berate James as he tried to do it again.

"You're on" Richard said, chuckling as he secretly shaking hands with the man besides him.

Unbeknownst to them, their wives and Petunia were doing the exact same thing.

* * *

***Saturday 1st September 1971 - 11:05***

Hermione laughed when James stumbled forward, almost toppling over when the train started moving. He caught himself on the door of a compartment, making the student - a boy who looked about their age with curly, black hair - inside laugh. James looked up, a faint flush on his cheeks but he grinned when he saw the laughing boy. He turned to look at the twins, who were also laughing - if a bit more quietly.

"Do you mind-?" He was cut off by Hermione, who waved her hand at him.

"Just go - god knows you need more friends. Besides me and Lily were going to find Severus anyway" Hermione looked over at her sister as she said this, not seeing James's look of disgust at the mention of her other friend, happy to see Lily nod in agreement. She turned back to James, smiling at the boy in the compartment when she saw him staring at them. He grinned back, winking. Hermione chuckled at that, not noticing James turning an angry glare at the boy. 

Lily's eyes crinkled at the edge, smiling, when the boy raised his hands and shrugged. She turned and wrapped her hand around Hermione's elbow, subtly reminding her that needed to go. Hermione took the hint and waved goodbye to the boys as they walked past to go and find their other friend. Once they had walked off, James opened the door and slipped into the compartment, a small glare on his face. 

"Right, if we ever stand the chance of becoming friends, you need to know - Hermione is mine and I'm going to marry her one day" James grinned as he said that, he eyes glazing as he imagined what it would look like. Hermione looking stunning as she walked down the aisle towards him, everyone crying and saying that they always knew that the two were meant to be. Petals being thrown as they left the church, him lifting her up as they walked through the door of their new home-

"Ahem"

James startled at the sound, his eyes focusing on the amused boy in front of him as the fantasy drifted away. The boy nodded in understanding.

"Got it - she's your girl. Out of bounds. Understood"

James grinned and went to sit opposite the boy, holding his hand out as he introduced himself. The boy introduced himself in turn, eyes sparkling with mirth. The boy, who James know knew was Sirius Orion Black, looked up in excitement as their door opened, revealing the trolley lady and her obscene amount of candy. Both boys immediately dived their hands into their pockets, pulling out large handfuls of gold as they both ran excitedly up to the smiling lady. Quickly rattling off a list each, they were both quickly stumbling under the weight of all the sweets they carried. 

Just before the trolley lady started to walk off, all the sweets that had been taken by Sirius and himself magically replenished, James dumped his handful of sweets onto his side of the compartment and ran back up to her. 

"Um, excuse me, can i buy someone else sweets - they're further down the train i think"

"Of course dearie, what can i get them and what are their names"

James quickly rattled off both Hermione's and Lily's names before choosing a number of sweets they would like and paying for them. He didn't chose as many sweets as he had because he knew the girls would never eat it. They probably wouldn't eat it all now but they save it for later. He thanked the trolley lady and sat back down, sticking his tongue out at Sirius when he saw his new friend's amused look. 

"Merlin, she must be a special girl if you go to all of the this trouble. Maybe I'm interested after all-"

He was cut off by James grabbing him into a headlock, ruffling his hair, grinning. Sirius laughed before realising what was happening to his hair. He let out a not very manly scream and instantly tried to break out of the headlock to save his precious hair the brutal treatment.

"Not the hair! Not the hair!"

James grinned and eventually let his go, collapsing back down onto his seat. Sirius immediately ran to the window, trying to see his reflection so he could sort out his hair. Eventually, james took pity on him and pulled out a mirror from his bag, handing it over to the stressed boy. Sirius snatched it up immediately, raking his fingers through his hair until it was silky and no longer a wild mess. Once he had finished, he handed the mirror back to James but James didn't take it.

"You keep it, their two way mirror - i've got the connected one. Just say my name while holding that and I'll answer it with my one. Their like Teleprones but we can see each other"

"What's a Teleprone?"

"Well, Hermione and Lily are muggleborns and i visited them a lot over the past year or so because both our family's became really good friends when my parents showed all them around Diagon Alley. A Teleprone is a device that lets you call anyone in the world and you just hold it to you ear and you can hear them and they can hear you. It's like a Floo call but without fire. It's incredible. My dad actually got one so we can keep in contact when we aren't at each others houses. You wouldn't believe how much our mothers talk everyday, It's incredible that they find that much to talk about"

Sirius stared at him incredulously. James looked at him in concern. He wasn't a muggle hating pureblood like the rest of his family, was he? He seemed more like Andromeda, who James had met multiple times and liked very much. He voiced his concern to Sirius, shocking him.

"What? No, of course not! I just thought... My parents never let my brother and i near muggles and whenever we asked, they would say that it was like this for all Pureblood families"

"Oh. No, it's definitely not like that. My parents have always taught me to treat muggles as equals because, just because they don't have magic doesn't mean they're inferior. Which is totally true! Have you seen some of the inventions they've created. Oh, I love being at the Evans home - it's so cool!"

James grinned and Sirius grinned back, glad to have found someone who could prove his parents lives. 

And just then, without them noticing, an unbreakable friendship was set.


	6. Sweets and New Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's pretty much explained in the title :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fin.pinterest.com%2Fpin%2F797066834026391480%2F&psig=AOvVaw2blK6rTnuDFhUpvSEPsIya&ust=1598464084193000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCJiW-Jv1tusCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAE
> 
> ^ Just a little teaser for this chapter 😉

* * *

I've created a simple cover for this story - I can't figure out how to put on here but just search up the story on Fanfiction.net and it should be the story cover :)

* * *

*** Saturday 1st September 1971 - 12:07***

Hermione was curled up next her sister, resting her head on her shoulder, both of them reading one of their new school books together. They loved reading books together, it just seemed more natural then reading separately. Sev was sitting on the opposite bench, also reading a book. He concentration wavered every so often and he found himself staring at both twins before he caught himself and shoved his nose back into the pages.

He liked both twins very much - they were his first friends, his best friends. But he couldn't help the small crush on Lily that had formed without him realising. Severus didn't know when it had happened but he had suddenly found himself staring at her more often, and it felt like his stomach was doing all sorts of somersaults when she smiled at him or laughed. Hermione's laugh was probably the prettiest laugh he had ever heard, a very melodic laugh - almost like bells, but Lily's laugh was rich and warm and he loved it.

At that moment, the compartment door slid open and all three children looked up to see a haughty looking boy standing there. He looked to be about 6th year and had long, icy blonde hair. He gave them what looked like was supposed to be a smile but it came out as a half attempted sneer. Hermione pressed her lips together to keep herself from giggling, nudging Lily in the side with as much subtlety as she could manage. 

"I suppose you're all First Years as I've never seen you before. I'm sure i would've remembered that hair"

He looked pointedly at Hermione hair, his eyes cold when they dropped to look at hers, a sarcastic smirk on his face. Hermione simply raised an eyebrow, completely unbothered. The boy seemed to approve of her reaction, the corner of his mouth turning up in amusement. Lily snorted slightly at her sisters face, drawing the boys attention to her. He looked her up and down for a moment before deciding she wasn't worth his time and turning to Severus. Both boys stared at each other for a few seconds before the blonde boy nodded once and looked away.

"I'm Lucius Malfoy. I assume you have your eyes set on Slytherin House, you all seem like the sensible type. You certainly wouldn't fit into Gryffindor - they're a bunch of brash morons who play off stupidity as bravery"

Hermione instantly decided to try as hard as she could to get into Gryffindor - or any other house apart from Slytherin she supposed. Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff seemed nice enough and she was sure she would fit in fine if she did end up getting put in either of those houses but something about Gryffindor just called to her - she knew Lily felt the same but her sister had already assured her that whatever house Hermione was in, she would follow

Severus looked over at the two girls, his eyebrow curved into a perfected arch, a small sneer flickering over his lips for a second, mocking the boy in front of them. Hermione dug her nails into the skin of her knee to distract her from her hilarious friend. Lily was on the same wavelength, focusing on the different wood patterns on the floor so as to not burst into laughter. Malfoy watched them, his lip curling slightly before turning away and making his leave, door sliding shut behind him.

All three children burst into laughter, mocking his expressions and voice. Hermione giggled, wiping away the tears from her eyes as she kicked her legs up and down, purposely skimming Sev's shin every now and then. He glared at her for a moment before grinning and kicking his own legs up and down, getting his own back. Soon enough, a full on leg war had commenced while Lily looked on in amusement, her own legs tucked up beside her. Their door slid open again, revealing a kindly looking woman with a trolley of sweets.

"Good morning, dears. Do any of you happen to be Hermione or Lily Evans?"

The twins smiled, quickly affirming that they were them. The woman smiled, and started picking out different sweets, handing them to the girls one by one until both girls had arms full of sweets. Lily looked at the woman in confusion.

"I'm sorry ma'am but we don't have enough to pay for all this-" She was interrupted by the woman, who had a smile on her face.

"Not to worry, Pumpkin. These are a gift from a sweet boy called James Potter. He also asked me to tell you that 'He hopes you enjoy them and that he wanted to give you more but he didn't think you would have eaten it all'. I'll be going up and down the train if you want to buy anything else, dears"

And then she was off, door sliding shut once again. Both sisters turned to look at each other, arms overflowing with every wizarding sweets imaginable. They both turned and dumped them all in the space next to Sev. Hermione loved sugar but she could've sworn that she could feel her teeth rotting away just by looking at this mountain of sweets. Severus stared at it in amazement. He had never seen so many sweets in his life and he could feel his stomach churning with want at the thought of food. He hadn't eaten for a few days. His Father had wasted their weekly cheque of money on alcohol and his Mother had been unable to to buy any food because of it. 

"Wow. Did she just say that James said he was sorry for not giving us more sweets?" Lily's voice was strained, her brain seeming to have slowed as she tried to comprehend how anyone would think that this was a small amount of sweets. Hermione looked at her sister, a thought having just come to mind.

"You don't think he's got a bigger pile, do you?"

Lily grinned and they both immediately turned for the door, telling Severus to help himself to the sweets before running out of their compartment, turning to go back the way they had come. 

It didn't take them long to find James again. Lily pulled open the compartment door, both Twins standing in the door frame. The boys looked up at the intrusion, 2 more having joined the compartment since the girls had run off the find Sirius. James immediately stood up, tripping over his own feet in his haste. Sirius nudged the boy next to him, both of them looking at James in amusement. The other boy, who was sat next to James smiled, his shoulders hunched ever so slightly at the sight of new people. Lily noticed his discomfort and smiled at him, the smile widening when she saw his eyes flash for a second before he smiled back.

"Hermione! My one true love! The Romeo to my Juli- no, wait. The Juliet to my Romeo! My only happiness in this dark, dark world - my only light! My angel-!"

"Yeah, yeah. Ok lover boy - cool it before you scare the poor girls off"

It was the other 'new' boy. He was sat next to Sirius, grinning at James with amusement. He turned to Lily and Hermione, reaching out his hand and shaking both of their hands in turn.

"I'm Frank Longbottom and that quiet fellow over there is Remus Lupin" Both girls waved at Remus, grinning, before turning back to Frank. "I'm sorry you had to see the sorry sight that was James Potter trying to pull off some sort of love poetry"

Hermione chuckled, smiling at James. He smiled straight back, glad that she hadn't gotten annoyed with him. She usually did when he tried to flirt with her. He didn't know why - the two of them getting together was inevitable. James could feel it.

"It's ok, I've been putting up with it for the last 9 or so months. I'm used to it. I'm Hermione Evans and this is my twin sister, Lily."

Frank laughed and shook both of their hands. Hermione was glad that James seemed to have gotten himself a friendship group. While she liked James, she needed a reprieve from him sometimes. Lily and herself would probably benefit from some more friends as well. So far they only really had 3 friends, if they didn't count each other. She'd definitely like a few more and she could tell that Lily did too.

"Uh, we actually came to ask James about the sweets"

James, who had sat back down, perked up, eyes shining.

"Did you get them? Do you want more? If there's not enough, i can buy a load more-"

"No James, thank you. It was a lovely thought and I know you know how much i like all things sugar but even i couldn't stomach the thought of eating that many sweets. We actually came to see how big your sweet pile is because ours is ridiculous. You did get sweets didn't you?"

Hermione looked around the compartment, surprised to see no trace of sweets anywhere. She spotted the boy's grinning faces and frowned at them suspiciously. She went to speak again but stopped when she saw James reach down, his hand grabbing something she couldn't see. Both girls gasped when he pulled off what that recognised at an Invisibility Cloak, revealing a large pile of sweets sitting on the floor between the 4 boys.

"Oh my God! Is that an Invisibility Cloak! Can I try it!?"

Hermione and Lily were almost jumping up and down in excitement. James nodded and patted the space in between him and Remus. Lily sat next to Frank, smiling when Sirius bent foreword to grin at her. Hermione had a bit of more difficult time trying to get to her seat. She had to somehow step around the sweet pile. As she balanced on one leg, the other in the air to step over the pile, the train lurched, knocking her off balance and plummeting her forward - and straight into James's lap. She immediately squealed and scooted off him and onto the comfy chair next to him. 

The rest of their friends were bent over with laughter, tears of mirth running down their cheeks as they looked at Hermione's flushed face. James grinned, looking like the cat that got the cream. Hermione hit his elbow, trying to knock the expression off him face but it just turned his attention back to her, making him grin wider. Hermione's face was bright red and as James watched, the redness travelled down her neck and-. He turned away, his face now flaming.

Trying to take his thoughts off of Hermione's blush, he handed the Cloak to her, watching in fascination as her embarrassment quickly receded, turning to awe as she felt the silky material. Without even blinking, she wrapped it around herself and her body disappeared - leaving only her head hanging in midair. She looked down at herself, gaping.

"This is amazing!"

James grinned, watching her pass the clock over to Lily, who was equally astounded. 

They spent several minutes astounding over the cloak and laughing with each other when a owl flew through the open window, landing on Lily's shoulder. She jumped looking over at the owl before realising it was Tyto, her owl. Hermione noticed a letter hanging from his leg and carefully untied it while Lily watched, Frank grabbing an owl treat from his pocket and giving it to the handsome bird.

"Oh, it's from Severus! He says that we need to come help him because a 'weird' blonde girl has raided our compartment and she's talking about creatures called Nargles"

Instantly, all 4 boys burst out laughing but Hermione and Lily just stood up and walked out of the compartment, leaving the Cloak on the seat behind them. James stopped laughing and called out to them, trying to get them to come back. When they didn't, he huffed and turned back to his friends who were still laughing. Lily and Hermione were half running, half walking as they made their way back to their compartment. They spoke to each other as they ran.

"Have you ever heard of a Nargle?"

"No. I don't think Sev has either. His handwriting was really messy, he must be freaked out"

Finally, after a few minutes, they found their compartment and saw Severus sitting squashed in the corner of his seat while a dirty blonde haired girl ate a chocolate frog, batting at the air in front of his face. Severus looked terrified and Hermione giggled, followed by Lily. And then they were laughing. Severus looked up at the sound and when he saw them laughing at his situation, he glared viciously at them, making them laugh harder. 

They girls opened the compartment door, gaining the attention of the new girl. She smiled happily at them and they smiled back, liking her already. They walked over and sat down, Lily by sev and Hermione next to Luna. When Hermione sat down, Bean, who had been sleeping in the corner, lept up and curled up on Hermione's lap. The blonde girl gasped and commented on how cute Bean was. The other three in the carriage looked at her weirdly. They hadn't told her Bean's name. The girl smiled at their reactions, crossing her ankles.

"My name's Pandora Escapee. I'm a Seer. Sometimes names jump to the front of my mind when i meet someone new. Like you 3. Lily, Severus and... Hermione"

Pandora looked at each of them in turn when she said their names, her eyes lingering on Hermione. Hermione stared back, shocked. The twins turned to Severus, eyes accusing. He put up his hands. "I didn't tell her anything". Both girls turned back to Pandora, she smiled at them. Lily tilted her head before smiling back, her sister doing the same. They liked this girl.

"What house do you want to be in, Pandora?"

"I'd like to be in Ravenclaw but i think I'll end up Gryffindor because I'm too reckless with my spells. I like to add extra swishes or change the words. Ravenclaw won't like that"

Severus choked, leaning forward in his seat, eyes wide. "You could cause some serious damage doing that! You could hurt yourself!" Pandora kicked her legs forward, looking at the floor. "Yes, i imagine I'll end up in some trouble later on" She smiled sadly for a moment but then her eyes lit up and she smiled wider. "Doesn't mean I'll stop though"

Hermione and Lily laughed. Yes, they definitely liked this girl. Then the compartment door slid open, again, scaring them out of their laughter. Two girls with black stood there, one with black shoulder length hair and one with golden blonde hair the the same length as the twins. The shorter haired girl was quite a lot shorter than the other girl and she had tear brimmed eyes and her lip was wobbling slightly. The taller girl smiled sadly at them.

"I'm sorry to interrupt but Alice has lost her toad. Have you seen him?"

Everyone shook their heads and Alice put her head in her hands, small, muffled sobs coming from her mouth. The other girl looked at her, her face lost. She looked back up, her eyes meeting Hermione. She held her hand to the side of her mouth. "I can't deal with crying people. Help, please. I feel really bad" She whispered, her eyes sad. Hermione smiled sympathetically before getting up and wrapping her arms around the crying girl. Almost immediately, the girl relaxed into the hug, wrapping her arms around Hermione's waist and crying into her collarbone.

"Alice, my names Hermione. My sister, Lily, and my friends, Pandora and Severus, and I will help you find your toad. What's his name?"

A small muffled 'Trevor' came in response. Hermione smiled and gently retracted herself from the smaller girl, reaching into her pocket and bringing out a packet of tissues. Taking one out, she handed one to Alice who smiled and thanked her before taking it and wiping her face. While she was doing that, the other girl introduced herself.

"My name's Marlene McKinnon. I saw Alice searching the train and decided to help her. We've searched the whole train and asked everyone on board - even the driver. He's not here"

Alice burst into tears again. Hermione bit the tip of her tongue, trying to decide what to do. Lily was staring at Alice sadly when she saw one of the pocket in the girls school robe wiggling. She pointed at it.

"Hey, your pocket's wiggling!"

Everyone looked and saw that it was wiggling. Alice shrieked and tried to hit it but Marlene caught her hand before it could smack the moving pocket. The taller girl reached into the pocket and brought out a struggling toad about the same size as her palm. Alice gasped and grabbed the toad, hugging him to her chest, practically stumbling over her apologies. Lily saw Severus rolling his eyes and elbowed him in the ribs. Hard. 

Once she had finished apologising to Trevor, she looked at everyone in the compartment. "I'm Alice Fortescue. Thank you for your help and for comforting me. I really appreciate it" Hermione, seeing that Alice was ok, sat back down next to Luna. "Do you want to sit with us? We've got two spare seats". She smiled at the standing girls. Both smiled back and took the offer, Alice sitting next to Hermione and Marlene sitting next Lily.

Official introductions went around and soon everyone knew everyone's name, laughing and chatting together. Severus looked slightly uncomfortable and usually tried stared out of window instead of chatting with girls but all of the girls wouldn't have any of it and called out his name when they caught him, asking him what he thought of the topic or just striking up a new conversation. 

Hermione and Lily smiled, glad to have a proper friend group in a world they belonged.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pandora's last name is pronounced Es-cap-ee ( Sounded like: S-cip-e)  
> Bit weird but Pandora, like her daughter, is unique and since we don't know her actual maiden name I made her a cool one.
> 
> Alice's toad, Trevor, is the same one that Neville had. It's a smooth sided toad, which only live for 10 years but i thought "Hey, it's a magical toad. 30 years sound pretty good". So yea. That's why Neville gets so upset when he loses Trevor - it was his mums.


	7. Hagrid, The Giant Squid and Gryffindor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for such a long wait! I can't believe it's been so long since i updated this story. Hopefully this chapter will redeem me!

***Saturday 1st September - 20:00***

"Firs' Years! Firs' Years, over 'ere!"

The train had finally arrived at Hogsmeade station and all 6 children were patiently waiting for the people in front of them to hop off the train so that they could go and find whoever was calling for the First Years. Finally, the crowd had thinned and Hermione jumped off first, gladly taking the hand of a brunette Prefect to help her with the drop. She thanked the boy and moved to the side to wait for her sister, Severus and their 3 new friends - Pandora, Alice and Marlene.

1 by 1, the children jumped down, accepting help from the tall Prefect before making their way over to a very tall man who was holding a ridiculously large oil lamp. The 5 girls huddled up a large group as the cold night air of Scotland started to seep through their uniform. Severus stood slightly away from them, refusing when they offered him a space. They were some of the first First Years there so the tall man walked over to them, a large smile on his face. Hermione heard Alice's mouth drop open slightly as he finally reached them and quickly nudged her before he could see. He was enormously tall, they barely even reached his waist. 

"'Ello Girls! My name's Rubeus Hagrid but you can just call me Hagrid. I'm the Keeper of Keys and Grounds 'ere at Hogwarts!"

The girls all said a quiet 'Hello' but Hermione jumped straight in, liking Hagrid already.

"It's nice to meet you, Hagrid. My name is Hermione Evans and this is my twin sister, Lily Evans. These are our friends, Severus Snape, Pandora Escapee, Marlene McKinnon and Alice Fortescue"

The girls waved at him as their name was said and Hagrid beamed at them. He went to speak again but a few Prefects walked up to them, bringing a whole gaggle of other First Years with them. Hermione spotted James and Sirius near the back of the crowd, standing next to Frank and Remus. She inwardly rolled her eyes when her eyes met James's and he lit up like a lightbulb, standing on his tiptoes and waving madly at her. She giggled, however, when Sirius mocked him, also waving at her. She waved back at them before turning back to where Hagrid stood, introducing himself to them all.

The older students had walked up a path where Hermione could see carriages waiting for them but Hagrid, once he had made sure all the first years were present, was leading them in the opposite direction. Hermione bit her lip, pulling at it. Lily lightly slapped her arm when she saw.

"Hermione! Mum told you to stop doing that - it butchers you lip"

Hermione shrugged but stopped doing it anyway. As they continued to follow Hagrid, their 3 new friends started to ask them questions about Muggle life, something that the Twins were happy to fill them in on. It amused them to see the girls faces when they explained the telephone and electricity. They were interrupted by the gasps of awe from the other children behind them, causing them to look up and let out gasps of their own. Before them lay a massive lake, the moonlight shining on it. It was a beautiful sight and instantly, Hermione knew she would be happy living in such a place.

"No more than 5 to a boat!"

All the children were pulled out of their trance by Hagrid's booming voice, their attention going to the hoard of wooden boats that seemed to have come from nowhere. Hermione thought they looked a bit small for 5 people but she didn't think about it for too long, simply accepting Hagrids word for what it was. By the time she had accepted that, Marlene had already chosen the nearest boat and was currently helping Alice to climb in. Hermione grabbed Lily's hand and they stepped closer to the boat, allowing Marlene and Pandora to climb in first before clambering in after them. 

"Stop rocking the boat, Marlene!"

Marlene laughed at Alice's frightened voice but stopped anyway, feeling bad for scaring her new friend. Hermione grinned at both of the girls, not realising that Lily was unsuccessfully trying to get her attention until her robe sleeve got yanked, pulling her forward and rocking the boat again, causing Alice to let out a small screech. Hermione turned to to her sister, annoyed.

"What!"

"Hermione - Severus can't fit into the boat!"

All 5 of the girls turned to see Sev watching them, still standing on dry land, and instantly started trying to budge up so that he could fit but it was no use. The boat was already full and would definitely sink if more then 5 people tried to climb in - magic or no magic. Hermione and Lily both pulled apologetic faces at their best friend and the other three girls smiled sadly at him. Severus seemed to be upset for a moment before he just shrugged and moved over to another boat. Alice seemed troubled and turned to the twins, offering to swap places with him but both of them shook their heads. Severus didn't like anything that he perceived as charity and so wouldn't accept the offer.

The boats jerked, pulling all thoughts of Severus out of their brains. The boats were moving. Hermione and Lily had read about this in Hogwarts: A History and so were not surprised that the boats were moving by themselves but many students were gasping and chattering excitedly. It wasn't long before both of them indulged in a long conversation about Transfiguration, happy with the knowledge that their Professor would be Professor McGonagall.

It seemed like a few minutes later when Hagrid shouted for all of the children's attention, announcing that they would have their first sight of Hogwarts soon, but their friends quickly told them that it had actually been about 20 minutes. Hermione was surprised that she wasn't feeling even a little bit sick. She loved boats and the sea but she got severly seasick. Maybe it was the magic. She sighed. She loved magic. 

A scream cut her from her thoughts and she looked over to see Marlene wriggling onto Pandora's lap, trying to get away from a dark looking figure that was rising from the water. All 5 girls looked on it horror but then the boat rocked slightly and light from the lantern at the front of the boat shone onto the figure for a mere second and Lily spotted suckers.

"Hey - it's just the Giant Squid. Remember, Hermione? From the Lake chapter of Hogwarts: A History. He likes saying hello to the new first years"

"Oooh, yes! I do remember - Don't worry Marlene, he won't hurt you. He's just saying hello. It's very nice to meet you Mr. Squid"

Lily, Pandora and surprisingly Alice copied her greeting but Marlene just whimpered and scooted further away, now half on Lily's lap as well. The tentacle seemed to wave before it sunk back into the depths of the lake. Shakily, Marlene crawled back into her seat, scratching absentmindedly at her arms and chest. She didn't explain herself and no one questioned her but soon enough, the silence was broken with the sudden burst of many bright lights as they rounded the edge of the cliff. Hermione's eyes widened and she clutched Lily's arm at the sight of a massive castle with all the many windows and outdoor lights illuminated, casting a beautiful sight.

Whereas before, the air was filled with the excited chatter of children, it was now deathly silent as each child stared at the ginormous castle. Each and everyone was filled with the feeling of anticipation and a slight bit of fear. However were they expected to find all of their classes in a building this big. They would get lost and no one would be able to find them because who could keep track of a castle with a multitude of students?

Within no time, they arrived at the shore, each boat bumping gently into shore in a long line. Shakily, Hermione got out first before helping everyone out of the boat, her legs feeling like jelly. They were in the boat house and it didn't long for them to walk up a multitude of steps until they reached the front door of the castle, the many towers looming high above their heads. Striding up to the door, Hagrid rapped sharply on it three times, causing a large booming sound to echo on the inside. Stepping back, only a second or two passed before both massive doors opened, revealing a woman. Hermione and Lily smiled at each other when they realised who it was.

"Thank you, Hagrid. First years, follow me"

Turning, she walked away smartly and all of the First years tripped over themselves trying to keep up with her. Eventually they reached another set of massive doors,obviously the door s to the Great Hall, but Professor McGonagall instead led them to a different, smaller door. Opening it she led the gaggle of children into a small room and turned around, causing all of the children to stumble to a stop. Her back was facing a different door and all the children could hear what seemed to be the excited chatter of the other students behind it. McGonagall surveyed the group for a moment and Hermione thought the corners of her mouth might have slid up slightly when she looked at both herself and Lily but quickly put it off to overactive imagination when she was looking away from them a moment later.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room.

"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rulebreaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours."

Hermione smiled at Lily, their hands clasped together.

"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting." Her eyes lingered on a few untidy students for a moment. "I shall return when we are ready for you," said Professor McGonagall. "Please wait quietly."

She turned and opened the door, walking through and closing it smartly before any of the children could peep through. Now that they were alone, chatter instantly started, echoing around the room, bouncing off the ceilings and walls. Hermione turned around to talk to the other girls but she was interrupted by something launching onto her back, clinging to her. The distinct smell of Pine and Strawberries wafted up her nose and she immediately knew it was James. He was the only boy she had ever met that naturally smelt of strawberries, her favourite fruit. 

"Hermione! I missed you - i haven't seen you for hours!!"

Hermione struggled slightly, trying to get the clingy boy off her back. When she was unsuccessful, she turned her head to look at her friends for help. Both Marlene and Sirius, who must have walked over with James, reach forward and yanked an arm each, smirking when James let out a yelp and let go, falling to the floor with a groan. Hermione turned, leaning backwards to click her back. She smiled when she saw Sirius wink at Marlene, causing the girl to look at him in disgust. 

Holding out a hand, Hermione smiled at James as she helped him up, ignoring the charming smile and wink he gave her in return. Rolling her eyes, she made her way back over to where Lily stood next to Severus, separated from the of their friends. Her hand wrapped around Severus's, ignoring his glare as he tried to tug away. She was ridiculously strong when she wanted to be and Severus needed to get used to love and affection. He had no choice.

"We're ready for you, follow me"

All of the children jumped, having not heard McGonagall enter the room. Hermione, Severus and Lily walked forward, looking at each other nervously, they were at the front of the crowd as the students followed them out of the room. The Great Hall was full of whispered chatter as they walked through the middle of two tables, all of the students craning their necks to have a look at them all, some of them betting who would get into which house. As they walked, Hermione's eyes drifted over to the table where they wearing green ties - Slytherin. Her bright green eyes met the cool grey ones of Lucius Malfoy. He nodded subtly at her and she bit back a sarcastic smile, simply looking away.

Once they had reached the front of the hall, they congregated into a large crowd, all watching as Professor McGonagall walked up the steps, picking up a dirty hat off an old stool before unravelling a scroll. The hall suddenly went silent as she began to read the first name, everyone watching with bated breath. 

"Abbott, Hayley"

A tall girl with long blonde hair, step forward, everyone moving out of way as she walked up the steps, sitting down. The dirty hat was placed on her head and a face appear on the worn leather, it's mouth moving although no sound came out. Judging by the shocked expression on Hayley's face, only she must be able to hear it. It was only about 10 seconds before-

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

A relieved expression made its way onto her face as Hayley slipped off the stool, happily walking over to her new house, her tie now sporting the colours yellow and black. After that, the next few students were a blur. Sirius got into Gryffindor, causing a ruckus, although he couldn't be happier as he grinned at James. A very handsome boy called Amos Diggory followed Hayley into Hufflepuff, winking at Hermione as he walked past her. She raised an eyebrow, her eyes following him to his seat. Lily giggled under her breath as she spotted James's face. He looked simply murderous.

"Evans, Hermione"

Everything froze and Hermione couldn't move. Surely it wasn't her turn already. Her feet were moving and she felt both of her hands being squeezed before being let go as she approached the stool. Professor McGonagall properly smiled at her, silently assuring her as the hat was placed on her head. A voice spoke, making her jump.

"Hmm! A muggleborn, eh? Interesting, interesting. You have brains, very much so - you'd do well in Ravenclaw. You're kind and extremely loyal, Hufflepuff would suit you. But what's this? Cunning and ambitious. It's a shame that you're not a Pureblood, Slytherin could be the house for you - it's all here in your head, you know. Unless... is that bravery i sense? Nerve, chivalry, courage and determination. Better be..."

"GRYFFINDOR!"


End file.
